THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, August 30, 1994 TAG: 9408300526
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK VEHORN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Long : 155 lines
Before George Welsh became football coach at the University of Virginia in 1982, the Cavaliers had never been to a bowl game. Now they have been to six.
But they haven't won one since 1987.
Before Welsh, the Cavaliers had never won an ACC championship.
But that was in 1989, and they tied with Duke.
Before Welsh, the Cavaliers had never won 10 games in one season.
But that was in 1989, and they played 13 games.
Before Welsh, the Cavaliers had never been ranked No. 1 in the polls.
Yeah, but that was in 1990. What has he done lately?
Lately, Welsh's Cavaliers have won seven games in each of the last two seasons, not good enough to attract a bowl invitation in 1992 and barely good enough to slip into the Carquest Bowl last season.
And while most Virginia football fans consider Welsh's importance in university history second only to Thomas Jefferson, some have begun to grow restless.
``I got more criticism last year than ever before,'' the 61-year-old Welsh says.
No one is forming a lynch mob, of course, and Welsh probably operates under less administrative and alumni pressure than any other Division I-A coach.
Still, some do want to know if it's ever going to get any better than this.
``We've started getting calls from people asking if George can take the program to a higher level,'' says Jerry Radcliff, sports editor of the Charlottesville Daily Progress and radio talk-show host.
Because the Cavaliers already are consistent winners - their string of seven consecutive winning seasons is the longest in the ACC (Florida State is ineligible since it has been in the league only two years) - moving up to the ``next level'' means winning league titles and competing for the national championship regularly.
In other words, it means reaching a competitive level with Florida State, which made life tougher for all other ACC coaches when it brought its national-powerhouse program into the league.
``When I first came to Virginia, our fans told me, `Just beat North Carolina,' '' Welsh recalls. ``We started doing that, and they said, `Just beat North Carolina and Virginia Tech.' We did that, and they said, `But we've never beaten Clemson,' and we did that in 1990.
``Now they want to know when are we going to beat Florida State.''
Virginia opens the season Saturday against Florida State, which has not lost to an ACC team during its two-year membership.
The Seminoles are unanimous preseason picks to win the ACC again, leaving Virginia and North Carolina to duel for second place.
``No question, Florida State has made it tougher,'' Welsh says. ``Any time you add a team like that, you change the equation a lot when you start talking about who can win the conference.''
Still, Welsh doesn't think Florida State will dominate the league forever. He thinks eventually the ACC will have four or five teams worthy of challenging the Seminoles.
``But it might take a couple of years for recruiting to take effect and we get better players in the conference,'' he says. ``If you are going to beat Florida State for the title, you have to have three or four teams competing with them every week, and that is not true right now.
``No one in our league, and only two or three teams in the country, have the kind of talent, depth and speed to compete with Florida State. That isn't to say we can't beat them now. We'd have to be at our peak and catch a couple of breaks. But certainly it is possible.''
But whether Virginia can move up to that next level is debatable. ACC observers say it is unrealistic to expect Virginia, a school with lofty academic standards, to compete regularly on equal terms with Florida State.
Virginia assistant coach Tom O'Brien tends to agree.
``Your goal every year is to compete for the league title,'' says O'Brien, ``but I think with the academic restraints here, I don't know if you can go three years in a row as a 10-win program.
``You look at last year, we were the fourth-highest team with the SATs in the country. Duke, Vanderbilt and Stanford were higher than us, and they are not playing football like we are.''
O'Brien came to Virginia with Welsh from the U.S. Naval Academy. He says recruiting standards have not eased in the last 12 years, and Virginia continues to lose recruits to schools with lower standards.
Last winter, recruiters brought in Dwayne Morgan, a 320-pound junior college tackle. When Morgan tried to enroll for the second semester, he was told he did not qualify. A Virginia assistant coach took Morgan to the airport and put him on a plane for South Carolina, where he enrolled in Clemson. He will start for Clemson this season and is expected to be one of the best offensive linemen in the league.
Welsh, though, has never complained about having a recruiting disadvantage because of Virginia's academic standards. He is reluctant even to acknowledge that they are a handicap.
``I don't think academics is a factor necessarily,'' he says. ``Florida State can't take any Prop 48 players, and as for NCAA requirements, it is on the same plane as we are. So, I don't think entrance requirements should be a factor in whether we can compete with them on the football field.''
There are other factors, though, that Welsh acknowledges do make it tough for Virginia to recruit the kind of players who might take it to the next level.
``We lost a kid this year because he wanted to go play at a school where they have an 85,000-seat stadium,'' Welsh recalled. ``We've got only a 45,000-seat stadium, so we don't get those guys.''
Welsh doesn't set goals for his teams, but he is hopeful before he leaves Virginia that he will have another team ranked No. 1, as the 1990 team was for three weeks, and he doesn't rule out the possibility of winning a national championship.
Welsh says the next year is critical if Virginia is to move up to the next level: ``We have to bring in a lot of quality people in next year's class. The numbers have to be up, and the quality has to be up. We are only two-deep in linemen in the upper classes, and that is not good.''
When Welsh speaks about the future, however, that brings up another question: How much longer does he plan to coach?
He once thought by now he would have grown tired of football and be involved in a third career.
His first career was a brief one, as a Navy officer after graduating from the academy.
For the past 34 years, he has coached football.
``I really did plan to do something else when I was 60, 61, or 62,'' he says. But a couple years ago, Welsh had a change of heart.
Why? Probably because he will still get goose bumps Saturday afternoon when he sprints from the tunnel and onto the field at Tallahassee to begin his 13th season at Virginia.
He still enjoys matching wits with the coach on the other side of the field and hasn't tired of sitting alone in a dark room, watching game tape and trying to come up with a new play, or searching for a flaw in an upcoming opponent.
``I still think I can contribute, too,'' he says. ``I think I am a good field coach. I have always been able to go on the field and see some things and make corrections. I have a good feel for personnel. I still like going on the practice field. I still get nervous on game days.''
Welsh no longer has a timetable for how much longer he will continue to coach.
Maybe in a few summers he won't feel like leaving his summer home in New England or won't be excited about beginning a new season.
Maybe one day he will not feel like going onto the practice field and lecturing a kid young enough to be his grandson on the art of throwing a football.
Maybe he'll rather be home playing with his own grandkids.
But that's not what he feels like doing now. Besides, Bobby Bowden, who just won a national championship, is older than Welsh.
``He's still doing pretty good, isn't he?'' Welsh says of Bowden. ``Joe Paterno is still going strong, and he's a couple of years older than me.''
O'Brien says coaching football is the only thing Welsh likes to do: ``He hasn't lost the desire, and as long as that is still there and he's still throwing his hat on the sidelines, things are fine.''
That is good news for Virginia fans.
No one knows for sure how much farther Welsh can lift the program, but they know what football was like at Virginia before he arrived. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
LAWRENCE JACKSON/Staff
``When I first came to Virginia, our fans told me, `Just beat North
Carolina,' '' coach George Welsh recalls. ``We started doing that. .
. . Now they want to know when are we going to beat Florida State.''
That answer may come Saturday.
by CNB